BELEWS CREEK, N.C. — When selecting the perfect prom dress, some prefer glitz and glam. Others want a simple, understated look. No matter the design, a Triad woman is trying to make some Buncombe County teens’ prom dress dreams come true after they were devastated by Helene.

What You Need To Know

  • A Triad woman who didn't get to go to her own prom is now helping teens enjoy their big night after their community was devastated by Helene

  • Reanna Ruark founded nonprofit Shining Through the Storm

  • So far, Ruark has collected more than 500 prom dresses to help students at Owen High School in Black Mountain, in the hard-hit Swannanoa Valley

The storm hit the region in September 2024. 

Reanna Ruark founded the nonprofit Shining Through the Storm to help people impacted by the destructive storm. Ruark's friend’s mother had the idea to collect prom dresses for high schoolers in areas that flooded. 

So far, Ruark has collected more than 500 prom dresses to help students at Owen High School in Black Mountain, in the hard-hit Swannanoa Valley. Her goal is to help students at other schools as well. 

“It makes me excited. These are memories in these dresses,” she said. “I think being able to have a variety for all of these girls to pick what they want is awesome.” 

Ruark knows the importance of a beautiful dress. She was crowned Universe United Miss North Carolina 2025 and Miss Forsyth County USA in 2023. 

To help source dresses, she set up a dozen collection sites in the Triad and Charlotte. After posting her goal on TikTok, two young women from Texas saw her message and shipped dresses. She said designer Ava Presley also took notice and sent 34 brand new dresses for the cause. 

“It was kind of amazing, because you start something and you don't expect it to take off immediately,” Ruark said. “I remember I was scrolling through my phone and my pictures, and I had 25 dresses hanging on a rack. I thought it was the most amazing thing in the world, and it just kind of humbled me to look back and be like, ‘Wow, the community just really comes together, even the whole country.’”

Owen High School’s prom is April 25. Ruark plans to have dresses and accessories set up in the media center on April 3 for students to pick what they like. She is accepting donations until April 1. Any leftover dresses will be donated for next year’s prom. 

Jessica McDermott, a junior at the school, said the kind gesture means so much to her and her classmates. 

“I was kind of really blown away by that fact because, especially in our area, we got a lot of damage by the hurricane, and a lot of students lost their homes,” she said. “I think someone that’s seen the damage and knows what’s happening and is trying to help in non-conventional ways, I think that really meant a lot.” 

“It’s also giving students more of a conventional high school experience,” McDermott added. “Without this, many wouldn’t be able to experience a normal high school experience, especially for the seniors.” 

Owen High School social worker Laura Cleaveland has been helping students process what they lost in the storm. Families who were devastated financially will benefit from Ruark’s kindness, she said. 

“Even if [families have] gotten back into a home, they had a lot of costs to replace pots and dishes and just thinking about everything in your household,” Cleveland said. “So any help, especially before people are about to go off and do graduation and go off to college, which is also very expensive, any areas that they can save is appreciated.” 

Ruark has been able to meet some of the girls she is helping and says she watched their faces light up when talking about dresses. 

“They were so excited to be able to get a dress and kind of take away the hardship that they've been facing for the past six months,” she said. 

Ruark hopes her good deed will help the teens’ troubles fade away so they can have the magical prom experience that she never had. 

“I didn't get to attend prom. COVID hit my sophomore year, and I switched to homeschooling online,” Ruark said. “When I thought about this, I was like, ‘Wow, I don't have those memories to tell my kids or my grandchildren.’ So that kind of sparked something in me as well, to be able to give these memories to these girls that can pass down for years to come.” 

In a surprising twist of fate, Ruark will get a second chance to experience prom – this time with the girls she’s helping. She said Owen High School has invited her to attend their big bash. 

"It’s going to be crazy, because, you know, 21 years old, going to prom, dressed up, hanging out with all the high schoolers and everything,” Ruark said. “It'll be a memory that I can share forever, that I got to attend a prom where I helped donate dresses.”